Corporate Retreat
by Ceridwen
Summary: Following corporate examples, General Hammond decides that it's time to send SG-1 on an non-mission away-weekend. But as the team arrives at their destination, Jack soon realizes that they've been followed by a ghost from his past.


SG-1 FF: "Corporate Retreat"

**"Corporate Retreat"**

**By Ceridwen**

**Chapter 1**

"I wonder what that's all about?" Carter commented as SG-1 exited the elevator and the team headed into General Hammond's office. 

They had just returned from their latest mission to PX7932 and had reported nothing out of the ordinary. Just a beautiful planet with interesting wildlife, three suns and a multitude of blue plant life. Daniel Jackson, naturally, wanted to stay a bit longer to investigate the flora and fauna, but Colonel O'Neill had decided that after no trace of any kind of civilization could be found, the Goa'uld had obviously abandoned this planet centuries ago and that there was no imminent threat to Earth. Teal'c had agreed with his usual stoic nod and Jack had called it a day.

_*Nothing out of the ordinary*_, Colonel O'Neill thought as he remembered the three suns shining brightly over the planet. How his view of the world and the universe had changed over the past year, sometimes still left him breathless. They had been to so many planets and had met so many strange civilizations that his entire world-view had changed dramatically. It had been turned upside down to be precise. They knew that they weren't alone in the universe and had made many friends amongst a variety of alien cultures. The universe was indeed a big space. But the discovery of strange and fascinating places and people had come with a dangerous price tag. 

The Goa'uld. 

Since their first mission through the Stargate to Abydos, Jack had more than once come face-to-face with the powerful aliens whose goal it was to rule the universe and collect slaves and host bodies on every possible planet. After this first encounter, the Stargate on Earth had started to be used by the US Air Force to both explore the universe and to identify possible threats to Earth. And to find allies and new technologies which could be used against an attack by the Goa'uld.

And Jack O'Neill was a soldier. 

As much as he secretly enjoyed the new and fascinating things they came across on each mission, he had to leave the exploring to Dr. Daniel Jackson, SG-1's archaeologist and linguist. O'Neill's first priority was the safety of his team and of Earth and so he couldn't allow himself to be caught up in _*amazing stuff*_ as Daniel liked to call it.

"Maybe he's gonna give us a raise!" Daniel joked as the elevator doors closed behind them and he paced next to Jack. 

O'Neill smiled. "Or we're all fired!"

Teal'c who walked next to Sam Carter tilted his head as he tried to understand Jack's comment. "Fired?" he asked and raise his left eyebrow in confusion.

O'Neill waved his hand. "It's just an never mind, Teal'c!"

As they'd reached the door to General Hammond's office, they stopped and Jack knocked.

"Come!" they heard from the inside and as they'd all entered, General Hammond smiled unusually brightly at the team. "Good news, team! The US Government has a couple of cottages in the Lake District just outside of Colorado and guess what? It's your turn this year to spend a wonderful weekend there."

Jack stared at the General. "So what's the good news, General?" he asked dryly as he stuffed his hands into his pockets.

General Hammond smiled. "That is the good news, Colonel. New government regulations require every high pressure team to take a break and have a weekend away. Some time off to enjoy yourselves, relax and do some "

Jack dropped his head backwards. "Oh no, Sir, please! Not one of those weekend bonding ... things!" He pointed at himself and then at his team. "I think we already spend enough time together on missions and on this base to have bonded sufficiently to satisfy any government regulation."

"That's it exactly, Son. On missions! The President thinks it would be beneficial for the teams if you would spend a weekend together outside of this facility and outside of this job. No Goa'uld, no Stargate and no strange cultures and interesting artifacts." The last two comments were said into Daniel's direction and Carter suppressed a smile as she watched the archaeologist's face turn slightly red. "And," General Hammond concluded. "I personally think that's a wonderful idea. So I've cancelled your next mission to P4X5876 in favour of some quality time for SG-1." He opened a draw at his desk and handed O'Neill a brown envelope. "Colonel, here are your travel details. Have a great time, relax and I see you on Monday!"

Jack sighed heavily as he realized that there was no arguing and tried an enthusiastic smile. "Pack your bags, boys and girls" he said. "We're going on a corporate retreat!"

**Chapter 2**

Jack O'Neill's jeep was making its steady way up twisty mountain roads. "I can't believe the General would do this to us." he hissed. They had left Cheyenne Mountain an hour after the morning meeting and Jack had offered to take everybody in his 4x4. It hadn't taken them long to find the valley with its small village at which outskirts the cabin was located. They had made a small stop-over at the local grocer and shopped enough food to take them over the weekend and to get some directions as to the location of the cabin.

Daniel shrugged his shoulders as he looked out of the window at passing trees. "Well, we better go along with it and try and make the best out of it, or the General will have our hides for breakfast!"

Teal'c looked over at Carter. "The General will consume our skins?" he asked.

"No oh, never mind, Teal'c!" O'Neill said as he continued to concentrate on the narrow road ahead. 

There was a moment of silence, broken by Sam. "So, anybody know any good songs?" she asked. "Maybe that will cheer us up."

Teal'c looked at her. "There is a song amongst the Jaffa which is designed to lift our spirits and give us strength before a great battle."

Daniel shook his head as he continued to stare out of the window. "Sounds fitting!"

Jack looked at the tall warrior trough his back mirror. "Jaffa music?" he asked. "Well, if it's anything like Jaffa jokes, I think it's time to introduce Teal'c to the earthly tradition of New Years resolutions." He grinned widely. "Let's say his resolution for the New Year is gonna be to "

But he didn't get any further. 

A loud explosion noise ripped through the forest and the car started to swivel out of control. 

"Shit!!" O'Neill shouted as he lost control over the car and it skitted across the road. "Hold on everybody!" 

Jack tried to pull the jeep back onto the road and pulled the steering wheel to his left as he put his food on the brakes. The side of the car slammed into a tree and was pushed back onto the road, where it eventually came to a hold as O'Neill almost stepped the brakes through the floor. Smoke started to rise out of the bonnet. 

"Damn!" Jack asked as gently probed the side of his head to see if he was bleeding. His fingers came back bloody. He'd hit his head against the side window as the car crashed into the tree and now his head span and he could feel a massive headache building up. But he'd had worse. Jack looked around to the others. "Is everybody okay?"

"Yeah, we're okay." Jackson hissed as he looked over to Sam and Teal'c. "What the hell was that?"

"I don't know." Jack said and stepped out of the car. The others followed him. O'Neill walked around the car and swore as he kicked the two now flat front tires. Then he crouched down and pulled a piece of barbed wire from underneath the car. "Where the hell does that come from?" he asked annoyed as he looked around. 

Carter stepped closer and shrugged. "Maybe it's from the forestry guys. They tend to fence stuff off with barbed wire. They might have lost it here."

"That doesn't look good." Daniel commented as he looked around, adjusted his glasses and then pointed at the two flat tires.

"Ya think?" Jack asked. He sighed annoyed, shook his head and looked up the road ahead. "Well, nothing to do about it right now. I've only got one spare." He thought for a moment and then looked at his friends. "All right everybody." he said as he turned around. "It's not that far anymore. I can see the cabin up ahead, so I suggest we leave the car here for the moment and walk the rest of the way."

It hadn't taken the group long to reach the small cottage at the end of the road. It was in extremely good shape and obviously well looked after. Jack pulled a small set of keys out of the envelope, Hammond had given him, and after inserting the key into the lock, he pushed the front door open. 

"Home, sweet home!" he said dryly as he stepped into the large main room and placed his weekend bag on the floor.

Sam, Daniel and Teal'c followed him inside and looked around. 

"This is like some sort of childhood nightmare, right?" Daniel asked as his eyes wandered over the kitchen utensils suspended from the ceiling by metal hocks. "We're in a bad TV series. _The little house on that Prairie'_ or something." He sighed. " Boy, I hated that show."

"Well, at least food's not a problem." Carter said as she placed her large travel bag onto the large, wooden table in the middle of the small cottage. "We can at least eat ourselves into oblivion. The shopping we did on the way will more than cover us for the weekend." She looked around, trying to spot the plastic shopping bag of provisions. "Where's the bag?" she asked, looking at Jackson and Teal'c.

"I believe Daniel Jackson was in charge of the provisions." Teal'c said.

Daniel creased his eyebrows and then smiled apologetically. "Ahh yeah. I think I left it in the car. I'll be right back." He turned around and walked out of the door. 

Jack shook his head as he watched Daniel head out. "I'm telling ya, one day the boy's gonna forget his head." Then he turned back, looked at Sam and Teal'c and rubbed his hands together. "Right then, Team. I suggest, we unpack, have a shower and then decide how we're gonna start some government regulated bonding."

Sam grinned slightly. "Yeah, afterall we don't want to disappoint the President now, do we?"

Teal'c had lowered himself onto a chair in the corner of the room. He looked at Jack. "I do not understand this concept of bonding, O'Neill." he started. "Why would General Hammond believe we do not work well together? Is this some fort of punishment?"

The Colonel shrugged. "Well, the government thinks that it would do us some good to spent some time with each other. Doing something other than exploring planets and killing aliens. So they send us off into the wilderness with no TV and nothing to do except relax, sleep, eat and take long walks among the local fauna and flora." He paused for a moment and then smiled. "So, I guess you're right, Teal'c. It is a form punishment."

Sam threw him a quick glance and then turned to look at Teal'c. "What the Colonel is trying to say is that this type of program is not unusual on our planet. It helps teams under extreme stress and pressure to relax and form relationships outside the job. It's a psychological thing rather than a physical."

Something that sounded like Beethoven's 5th Symphony sounded out of Sam's jacket. She reached inside her pocket and pulled out her mobile phone. "Yeah hello?" Sam's eyes widened as he handed the phone over the Colonel. "It's for you, Sir." she said slightly surprised. "It's Daniel."

Jack's eyes went wide as he took the phone. "Daniel? Oh for crying out loud! He's just supposed to get a bag out of the car!" He held the phone to his ear. "Daniel, this better be good!" Then O'Neill's eyes went serious, he handed the phone back to Sam and rushed out of the door. Teal'c and Carter just exchanged confused looks and followed him. 

As they reached the spot where they'd left the car, they could see Daniel standing motionless at Jack's jeep and his hand held the door handle firmly enclosed. He looked slightly pale.

"Daniel? What's wrong?" Carter asked as she stepped closer to the archaeologist. 

But suddenly she was stopped by O'Neill, whose hand had grabbed hold of her arm and stopped her from walking any closer to Jackson and the car. Daniel looked down at his hand, which held the lock of the car door pulled up in the *open* position. He looked over at O'Neill. 

"I'm not sure, Jack, but I heard this strange clicking noise when I lifted the handle to open the door and then this cube fell out from under the door handle " Daniel swallowed as he pointed at the mobile phone laying on the hood of the car now. "I grabbed the mobile that was on the seat and rang you just to make sure "

O'Neill walked up to Daniel and bent down to pick up a small wooden cube, which was laying at the younger man's feet. He turned it in his hand and creased his eyebrows as he examined it closer. Sam stepped up behind him and looked over his shoulder. "Time to fly!" she read out loud and looked at Jack "_'Time to fly'_? What does that mean, Sir?"

The Colonel took a deep breath and crouched down beside Daniel to take a look underneath the carriage of the car. "It means that we're not alone and that whoever is out there has a sick sense of humour." he said as his head disappeared underneath the car.

Carter laughed out. "Sir, you're not seriously telling me that there's a bomb under your car!" 

Jack pulled out from underneath the carriage and looked up at Sam, then over at Daniel, his serious expression answering the question. 

The young archaeologist sighed painfully. "Oh, no "

Jack stood up and brushed specks of dust off his pants. "Don't worry, Daniel. It's a standard three-wired C4 explosive device connected to what looks like the door handle. As long as you hold it where it is and don't move, you're fine." He took a deep breath and smiled encouragingly. "Diffusing that is a piece of cake."

"Piece of cake, hum?" Sam answered. "You can do this, right Sir? I mean you've done this before? Diffusing bombs and stuff?"

Jack waved her off leisurely. "Yeah sure, plenty of times. More or less successful "

"More or *less* successful??" Daniel asked in a slight panic.

Jack shrugged and turned back at Daniel. "Don't worry, Danny-boy. Just hang on there. I'll be right back."

"Sure, I'll hang on. I don't really have anywhere to er where are you going, Jack?"

"What do you think? That I can disarm a bomb with a paper clip??" 

**Chapter 3**

Sweat was pouring down Daniel's forehead and soaking the top of his shirt. His right hand, which held the door handle firmly lifted, had started to hurt, but he forced himself to keep his hand steady. If this wasn't a hoax and he let go To his feet, he could hear Jack working around underneath the car. All he could see were his legs and all he seemed to hear was his occasional swearing and clipping and screwing noises. Teal'c and Sam were standing a save distance away and watched the two men at the car.

"Daniel?" the Colonel asked suddenly.

"Yes?"

"Which colour?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Which colour? Give me a colour. Green, red or white?"

"Oh, you're joking, right Jack? I thought you said you knew about these things!"

"I do, I do. Trust me. Just give me a colour."

"Okay, okay whatever white!"

"White. Thanks!"

Daniel tensed as he waited for the imminent explosion. He wasn't at all feeling comfortable about what Jack was doing beneath the car. The seconds ticked away slowly and made it seem like an eternity.

"Are you still standing up there holding on?" Jack's voice came from underneath the car.

Jackson swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes, Jack!"

O'Neill's head peeked out and then he scrambled up from the floor. "Good. Then I've done it. You can let go." The Colonel's right hand held a small black box. "Here's a souvenir for ya!" he said with a wide smile and threw Daniel the small black metal box with three clipped wires hanging out. 

Three white wires.

Daniel released a breath he didn't know he was holding as he caught Jack's *gift* with both hands. "Thanks, Jack I guess." He looked from the box in his hands up into the older man's face and nodded. "That was close."

"Yeah." Jack said and slapped the younger man on the back. then he waved at Sam and Teal'c indicating that everything was okay. 

"Where did you learn how to do that?" Sam asked in astonishment as she stepped close and examined the small explosive device in Daniel's hand.

Jack turned to look at her as he handed Daniel a bottle of water from the back seat of the car. "Trust me, you don't want to know."

Daniel took the water Jack handed him, and took a healthy gulp to cleanse his dry throat. "Okay, so hang on a minute here. Who would want to put a bomb under our car?" Daniel asked after he'd emptied half of the bottle in one go.

"Well, whoever did this must have done it while we were in the house. There's no other way." Carter thought and looked at Daniel again. "Which still doesn't explain who would want to kill you like this - and why."

Daniel's eyes widened in surprise. "Kill me? Why? It wasn't my car. It was Jack's!" 

All their eyes turned to look at the Colonel. Jack was standing behind the group with his hands stuffed deep into his pockets. 

Daniel turned around fully to face at him. "Jack?" 

"What?" he asked as he watched the inquisitive expressions on his team's faces.

Teal'c stepped closer to him. "It is obvious that somebody has placed an explosive device underneath your car to cause you harm, O'Neill. We are merely concerned as to the possible reasons for such an action."

Daniel shrugged. "I mean it's almost like we were set up. First the car breaks down with the barbed wire and then the bomb!" With a low whisper, he added "Good thing I had that phone handy, guys, or I'd still be standing there!" He looked up at his friends. "By the way, whose phone was it?"

There was a dead silence only interrupted by O'Neill low mumbling. "Barbed wire car bomb wired to the door handle mobile phone "

Teal'c looked at the Colonel. "Colonel O'Neill?" he asked. "Are you not well?"

Jack's head shot up and it was obvious that he was caught in some distant past, his brain working frantically to find something hidden deep within his memory. Then his eyes went wide as if recognition set in. "This is ridiculous. It's not possible." Jack shook his head. "No way. He's dead."

Carter creased her eyebrows. "What isn't possible, Colonel?" she asked. "Who's dead?"

O'Neill took a deep breath and paused for a moment, obviously weighing up how much to tell his friends about the face that had materialized in his head now. "There was this guy in black ops with me. Michael. He was in charge of the – let's say problem solving' arm of the unit. And boy, did he come up with inventive stuff." He sighed before he continued. "One time he wanted to get rid of two brothers who were manufacturing bombs for the Hizb'ullah back in Lebanon in 84. He hid a bomb under their car and placed a mobile phone next to it, knowing that when the one brother found and activated the bomb, he'd call the other to help him out. Once they were both at the car, trying to diffuse the bomb, he blew the whole thing up by remote control." 

At his last word, Jack stiffened and looked over to the hood of the car on which Daniel had placed the mobile phone just moments before. 

"Shit!" he shouted and pushed Carter down the road into a ditch. "Get down everybody!!!!" 

Seconds later the clearing was rocked by an explosion which ripped the car apart and sprayed leaves, branches and metal parts everywhere.

**Chapter 4**

The blast of the explosion had ripped the car apart and sprayed leaves and branches everywhere. Jack, Sam, Daniel and Teal'c had jumped into the safety of a near-by ditch a few yards away and were now all huddled together protectively. As the echo of the explosion had carried through the forest and now gave way to a deadly silence, Carter looked up into the Colonel's eyes and released a breath of relief to see that he and the rest of SG-1 was unharmed.

Daniel sat up abruptly and looked at the Colonel and started to put two and two together. The story, which Jack had told them just seconds before seemed to have re-played itself in their face. "Okay, Jack. Who is this lunatic??" Jackson asked as he removed leaves out of his hair and from his cloths. "Some sick friend of yours with a score to settle or something?"

"Michael." Jack whispered, his eyes closed as he remembered a face from a long time ago. "No it can't be " He opened his eyes and looked at his teammates. "It's his signature, his MO. But he's its' not possible." He said resolutely and pushed himself up to stand. "He's dead."

"Are you sure, Jack?" Daniel asked as he stood up as well. "I mean I can't think of anybody wanting to kill me in such an imaginative way and I think we can safely rule Teal'c out." He took a deep breath before he continued. "And if Sam tells us an anecdote from her military storybook, she usually doesn't need to shoot us afterwards."

All eyes wandered to Jack, who had crawled out of the ditch and surveyed the damage done by the bomb. The jeep was a goner. Metal pieces were sprawled across the forest floor. Jack swore. "And I just had it cleaned this morning."

"Sir?" Sam asked carefully as she also stood and stepped up to him. She knew how much the Colonel valued his privacy and whatever had happened to him in his life in the military or out, he considered nobody's business but his own. However this time, she wasn't ready to give up that easily.

"Jack?" Daniel pressed as well. He wasn't ready to let it go either. "Could this be the same Michael? C'mon talk to us. We're all in this together, you know!"

O'Neill sighed. "I guess it could be Michael and he might think he's got a score to settle."

"He _*might_* think he's got a score to settle?" Daniel asked getting slightly agitated. "It looks to me like he's pretty sure here." He pointed at the remains of the car. "I mean look at this!"

Jack had started to walk back towards the cottage and now stopped dead in his tracks. He took a deep breath and turned around, looking at Daniel and then Sam and Teal'c. He could see the confusion and uneasiness in his friend's faces. If his suspicions where right, they would all be in big trouble. 

Not they – he.

"If it is Michael, then I've got to handle this. Alone." he said dryly and turned around. "It's me he's after."

Daniel stopped next to him. "Well, I think we've seen just now that we're all in this together." The archaeologist looked at Jack intensely. "Jack? Why would he be after you?"

Sam's eyes also wandered to look at O'Neill. "Colonel?" she asked.

O'Neill sighed. "Okay, okay." he said as he raised hi hands defensively. "It was an assignment we did back in 84. A team of mine was send to Beirut to – let's just say – solve a small terrorist problem. Our orders were clear: Get in, take out the identified threat and get back out without being detected." Jack shook his head. "Michael decided that there was more than just one threat, took a few of the men and went after this Palestinian guy." O'Neill paused for a moment as the memory of that day slowly came back to him. "I told him that what he'd planned was out of the question and that it would endanger the entire team, our informants in Beirut, and it would risk a diplomatic incident." Jack stopped himself for a brief moment to take a deep breath before he continued. "He didn't listen. He took three men and went after this guy against my orders." 

Sam, Daniel and Teal'c listened quietly. It was the first time they'd heard the Colonel speak in such detail about a mission from his past and they didn't dare interrupt or give him an excuse to stop now. Black ops has always been a grey operational area of the military and the more they've learned about O'Neill's past, the more they wondered how he had managed to keep his sanity.

"To cut a long story short," Jack continued. "His whole trip went sour and Michael and his team were captured. He radioed over that we should come and get them out, but I had orders to leave asap. The word was out about us being there and any further delay would have meant to risk the life of the entire team." Jack smiled painfully. "And the governments of three countries would have been caught with their pants down."

Sam studied the Colonel's face. "So you left him behind?" 

Just as she had said the words, Sam instantly regretted it as she'd remembered hearing stories about the Colonel having been imprisoned in Iraq during the Gulf war after having been left behind on a mission. Considering how serious the O'Neill she knew took his command, and how much care he put into watching out for the safety his team to the point of obsession, she suspected that his experiences during his captivity weren't pleasant. 

_*So you left him behind?*_ It was as if her words hit O'Neill like the lashes of a whip and he flinched visibly. "I left him behind." he whispered. "I had no choice." It sounded like the decision still haunted him and he still had to justify his actions to himself. "I had my orders and Michael just " His voice trailed off. "The transmission was cut and we assumed he was killed. The military listed him as MIA and that was the last I've heard of him."

Sam stared at him. "So what makes you think that all this " she trailed off and pointed back at the remains of the jeep. " that he's here now?"

Jack shrugged. "I don't know. It's just a gut feeling." He shrugged and looked at her. "He was good at this kinda stuff and it's his MO. The way he's hidden the bomb under the car, the phone, the message it's either him or somebody who knows his every way. Knows it so well it's almost spooky."

Daniel adjusted his glasses. "Well, you know how I think about those kind of government operations, Jack, but I think you did the right thing back then. You did what was best for the greater good and you had your orders."

Teal'c nodded. "I agree, O'Neill." he said. "If I would have been in your situation, I would have acted in the same manner. I would not have risked the lives of many to save a few in an attempt which would have surely failed."

"Yeah, thanks guys." O'Neill said. "It still doesn't make me sleep any better at night. So let's just leave it at that, shall we?" And they could tell that the subject was closed.

Teal'c raised his right eyebrow. "How would this Michael know that we are here?" he asked. "I assumed that this bonding exercise was confidential and is a strictly SGC practice."

Jack stopped dead in his tracks. "I don't know, Teal'c." he said. "But then the element of surprise was always Michael's kind of thing." He smiled painfully. "The guy prides himself to be able to pop out of nowhere."

"Have you noticed that you were followed, Sir?" Carter tried. "Maybe he was watching you for some time before he made his move."

Jack shook his head. "No, I'm pretty sure I wasn't followed. But then "

" you weren't expecting anybody to follow you." Carter finished for him and both nodded.

Jack was silent for a moment, obviously lost in his memories. Then he raised his head and looked at his team. "Well, this isn't the place to make plans. Let's head back to the cottage."

The team had reached the small cottage a few moments later and Jack stopped in front of the door. He reached for the door handle hesitantly, then pulled his hand back. "Oh God." he said and closed his eyes, slumping against the wall next to the door. "I don't even know if it's him and he's got me all wired up."

Sam moved up next to him and crouched down to took a closer look at the lock of the door. Then looked up from her position. "It looks okay to me, Sir." she said and stood up. 

"I guess there's only one way to find out." Jack said, pushed himself away from the wall and moved his hand toward the door lock. "You guys better stand back." he said and started to turn it slowly.

As his hand gripped the door handle closer and turned it slowly to open the door, he expected 

Something 

Anything 

But nothing happened

"So far, so good." Jack said and opened the door completely. Inside, the cottage was relatively roomy and offered the most basic amenities without being too spartanic.

.

"Okay guys." Jack said and sighed. "After this morning's entertainment, I'll just go upstairs and have my quick shower." Sam grabbed hold of her bag. "I think I'll do the same." she said. "I'll take the shower after you, Sir."

Daniel looked over at Teal'c and then at his watch. "Well, we'll just start unpacking in the meantime and see if we can wrap something up for lunch."

Jack grabbed his bag and made his way up the stairs. A nice hot shower would be just what he needed right now. He needed to clear his head and calm down. Do some thinking and then make everything go away. 

But somewhere deep down inside of him, a little warning voice whispered that there was more trouble ahead ...

**Chapter 5**

Jack's mind was still focussed on the bomb that had nearly killed them all as he climbed up the stairs and opened the door to his room. He walked across the room to the bed where he'd placed his bag earlier and opened the zipper to get his towel out. 

As he'd opened the bag 2/3rds of the way, a sudden noise made him freeze in his movement and he held his breath as he stared down at his hands. Jack's eyes wandered over the bag, trying to determine where the noise had come from. His hands were still poised as he could hear the slight hissing sound again. It came out of the bag and in one quick movement he pulled the bag from the bed and threw it across the room onto the floor. Shirts, towel and boxer shorts slit out and something else something long something alive something that now lay curled up in the middle of the room, focussing on him, it's black tongue flipping in and out of its mouth. 

Jack took a step back and gasped. "Jesus " he whispered as he stared in shock at the rattle snake in the centre of the room. 

Footsteps in the corridor pulled him roughly out of his concentration. "Colonel, are you finished with the showr yet?" 

Sam Carter. 

Jack froze as he stared from the snake in front of him to the door, through which he knew Captain Carter would walk any second. 

"Don't come in here, Carter!" he shouted and could see the rattle snake in front of him sway at the sound of his voice. 

"Shit!" he thought as he realized that it was too late. The door was pushed open and Carter walked into the room with a big smile on her face. 

"Why not, Sir? Are you naked or something?" But her smile froze instantly. "What's that noise?" Carter said as she stopped and looked down to the floor. Then she saw the animal in the centre of the room. Only, by the time she'd realized what it was, she had already crossed half the way and at the motion of her steps, the snake flew around and launched forwards.

"What the . Ouch!" Carter screamed and stumbled backwards as she stared down at the animal.

On the other side of the room, Jack had reached for his jacket and threw it over the reptile. In one swift move, he reached for the small bedside table, lifted it up and turning it, he brought it crashing onto the jacket on then floor. Jack took a deep breath and then carefully lifted the table back up and peeked underneath. There was no more movement and as he lifted the table and the jacket, he saw what had remained of the snake. 

There was no doubt it was dead. 

"Ooich I hate snakes!" O'Neill said loudly and looked over at Carter. "You okay, Captain?"

"I think it bit be." she whispered as she tried to run her hands over her lower leg. 

Jack caught them with his' and looked at her seriously. "I know. I saw." he said. "Just stay here and don't move." He pushed her down into a sitting position and walked over to his bag which was still laying on the bed. He reached inside and pulled out his Swiss army knife from the side pocket. 

Just then Daniel walked in, followed by Teal'c. "What's going on here?" he asked. "We heard noises." Then he saw the dead reptile. "Oh God, Jack! What happened?"

"Let's just say I had a bag full of surprises." O'Neill said as he rushed over to Sam and pushed her gently back to rest against the wall. "Don't worry, Sam. It's only a rattle snake and against common belief, it's not the most poisonous thing around here."

Daniel shook his head. "Jack, this is serious."

Colonel O'Neill's knife cut through the fabric of Sam's right lower leg and exposed the red, angry snakebite. It had already started to swell, but Jack was sure that it wasn't to late yet. "God, I really hate snakes." he whispered as he took a deep breath and lowered his mouth over the wound. Gently but firmly he started to suck the poison out of the wound and spit it out to the side. After a few minutes, he stopped and looked over at Carter to see how she was holding on. Her eyes stared at her leg and sweat stood on her forehead. O'Neill smiled encouragingly. "Well, under any other circumstances, this could be romantic." 

Sam looked from the wound up into his brown eyes. "Sir!" she said in a mixture of surprise and confusion. 

"Sorry." he said and smiled. Then he turned his attention back at her leg. "This truly sucks." he mumbled as he continued.

**Chapter 6**

Daniel sat down in a chair and stared at his friends. "Okay, so we had a bomb and a snake. Whatever next?"

After Jack had done all he could for Sam, they had all helped her downstairs and settled her into one of the comfortable armchairs in the far corner of the basement room, which was set up as a lounge area. There was a large fireplace in the centre of the wall and Teal'c had lit a fire to make the temperature in the cottage more comfortable. Sam swallowed hard as she fought against the nausea, which had overcome her as they had carried her downstairs and she watched Jack stare at her for a moment. Then he headed over to his black leather jacket, which was slung over the back of a chair at the table, and reaching into its inside pocket, he pulled out his 9mm. 

"Nothing is next." O'Neill said calmly as he checked the bullets by letting the magazine drop into his hand. "Sam needs a doctor, so you guys head on out of here."

"What? And what about you, Sir?" Sam asked as she looked in surprise from the wound on her leg over to the Colonel.

"I'll handle this." Jack said as he rammed the magazine back into the gun and loaded the weapon with a swift move.

Daniel stood up. "You'll handle it?" he asked. "Like how? You against him? Is this gonna be some sort of High Noon show-down? You're not Rambo, you know! You'll need our help!"

"No Daniel, trust me. This is for the " Jack didn't get any further as the cottage suddenly was plunged into darkness.

"Oh great!" they heard O'Neill say. "Now what?"

There was a moment of silence.

"Guys, I think I've found something." Jack heard Daniel in the corner across the room and suddenly a candle lit up. Even though it was the middle of the afternoon, the cottage windows were rather small and only allowed minimal light to filter through into the inside. Between Daniel's candle and the fireside, they were just about able to make each other out.

"Is everybody okay?" O'Neill asked concerned.

"Yeah." Daniel said and looked over at Sam. 

The Major nodded. "I'm fine."

Teal'c raised his eyebrow. "I am also unharmed, O'Neill." he said.

"Good." Jack said and looked around the room. "I think this calls for a trip to the fuse box then." He sighed and tucked his gun into his belt. "Any idea where it might be?"

"It's probably downstairs." Daniel said and watched Jack nod and head for the door to the basement on the other side of the kitchen. "Er, Jack, do you think this is such a good idea?" Daniel asked. "I mean this could be Michael's doing and he wants to split us up. "

"Yeah, maybe, but we need some light up here. "Jack answered. "And I'm not sitting here in candlelight. I'm not in the mood for a romantic atmosphere right now."

"He could be waiting for you down there." Sam added.

Jack turned to face her. "Then I can tell him what I think of his stupid games." he countered. The Colonel smiled as he read the worry in Carter's eyes. "Don't worry." 

Teal'c took a step forwards. "Maybe I should accompany you, O'Neill?" he said.

Jack looked at the Jaffa. "No, Teal'c. You stay here with Sam and Daniel. I don't want to have to worry about you while I'm down there." Then he turned slightly and padded the handle of the gun tucked into his belt. "Mr. Browning and I will be right back."

"Jack! You might need this!" Jackson called and threw him a flashlight. 

Jack caught it with his right hand and turning around, he opened the door to the basement. It was pitch dark and he could hardly see the steps in front of him. Slowly he put one foot in front of the other and worked his way carefully down the stairs. After he'd reached the bottom, he s witched on the flashlight and across the room, he spotted the fuse box. After taking another look around, Jack walked up to it and stopped in front. His eyes flew over the old, rusty metal box, trying to spot anything unusual. But it didn't look like it had been tempered with. Maybe the surprise was waiting for him somewhere else? Jack took a deep breath and placed the flashlight between his teeth, shining it at the fuse box. Both his hands now free, he reached out and carefully opened the hatch. 

Nothing happened. 

Jack sighed and reached for the top porcelain ON' switch. Touching it carefully, he held his fingers poised on it for a few seconds. 

Nothing happened.

"Oh for crying out loud. This is all a big hoax and we're all getting panicked over nothing!" Jack muttered between his teeth, which still clenched the flashlight in position. He took a deep breath and with a swift move gripped the switch. "What the hell!" he said and flipped the switch over.

O'Neill didn't even have time to scream as the sudden electricity burst cursed through his fingers into his body and drove the air out his lungs. It felt like his heart had stopped dead, squeezed between iron clasps. Stars danced in front of Jack's eyes as he painfully gasped for air, but his lungs would not obey him Then it became dark around him and he couldn't even feel as he hit the floor hard.

Upstairs in the lounge, Daniel had jumped up from his seat at the noise. The lights had come back on, but there was a powerful flickering as if a massive energy surge pulled out power from the system. "Jack?" he shouted, his voice full of panic. "Jack?"

He exchanged worried looks with Sam and Teal'c and rushed to the door of the basement. "Jack? Are you okay?" he shouted down, but there was no reply. He turned back to Teal'c. "Keep an eye on Sam, I'll be right back."

Teal'c nodded and placed his hand on Major Carter's shoulder. "Be careful, Daniel!" Sam shouted after the archaeologist.

Daniel didn't care much about safety and possible danger as he rushed down the stairs, taking two flights at a time. The lights in the cottage had come back on but the basement was still plunged in darkness. Across the room, he spotted the light of the flashlight laying on the floor and he could make out Jack's form laying next to it.

Daniel crouched down besides Jack in the almost complete darkness of the basement and helped him up to lean against the wall. Jack was out cold. "C'mon, Jack!" Daniel urged as he lowered his head to the Colonel's chest to check for a heart beat. It was faint, but it was there. Daniel sighed in relief and put his arms around O'Neill's shoulders to pull him up. He managed to drag himself and Jack up the stairs and was greeted by Teal'c who stood at the door. Together they carried O'Neill over to the fireplace and gently placed him down on the floor. Just then, they heard the Colonel groan. 

"Oh, boy " Jack said as he slowly opened his eyes and immediately regretted it. The light in the room was almost painful to his eyes and he took a deep breath to soothe the pounding headache. "What the hell hit me?" he asked, bringing his hands up to press at his temples and then sighed. "Oh, yeah I remember."

Daniel was crouched next to him, studying carefully. "You okay?" he asked.

Jack nodded. "I'll live." he managed.

Daniel leaned back. "Okay, Jack. Do you see now that we need to do this together?"

Jack shook his head in determination. "No. What I see is that you guys head on outta here and I'll catch up with you later." 

Carter looked up at O'Neill, stunned. "Sir, what are you planning?"

"It's obviously me he's after, Carter." Jack said as he reached for his gun, releasing the safety. "And it's time I end this here and now." He pushed himself up and hissed in pain as he steadied himself against the wall.

Carter stood up from her chair and joined Daniel and Teal'c who stood around the Colonel. "But Sir, you're in no condition to "

"Neither are you, Captain!" he said and looked at her painfully. "You've been bitten by a snake and to be honest, it's been a while since I've done stuff like sucking out poison. So you have to get to a doctor as soon as possible." O'Neill took a deep breath and looked at the Jaffa. "While I try to flash him out and distract him Teal'c, I want you to take Sam and Daniel and head down the forest path north. We passed a small hospital in the town "

Sam shook her head. "No, Sir, I think this is a bad idea."

Jack's eyes went wide. "Excuse me?"

Daniel stepped forwards to stand supportively next to Sam. "I agree, Jack. We're not just gonna leave you here with this this maniac. It's it's suicide!"

O'Neill stared from the scientist to Captain Carter. "Just one of those day I'd like to issue an order and have it followed." He looked at Sam, concern plainly in his eyes. "Please, don't argue with me, Captain."

Sam sighed heavily. She was about to tell him that this wasn't really a command situation, just a simple weekend away, but she knew she would overstep some invisible line. Daniel saw Carter's struggle and turned resolutely to look at O'Neill. Teal'c also stepped forwards to look at the Colonel. 

"Dr. Carter is right, O'Neill." the Jaffa said in his usual emotionless voice. "As it is obvious that this man wishes to harm you, our chances of defeating him are increased if we stay together."

Jack nodded. "You're right, Teal'c. He is after me. And that's exactly why you guys have to get out of here. I won't have my team unnecessarily endangered by a guy with a personal vendetta against me."

Daniel shook his head. "Jack, this is ridiculous. This guy has every advantage, knows the terrain and he seems to have an interesting arsenal of weapons with him. Now he might be after you, but Sam and Teal'c are right. If we leave you here on your own, he'll kill you." He tilted his head slightly. "Jack, this isn't a Stargate mission. We're off duty and you might be a Colonel, but you're also our friend. No matter what you're gonna say, we won't leave a friend on his own when he needs us." He looked intensely into Jack's eyes. "You'd do the same."

Jack shook his head in frustration. "Daniel, you've narrowly escaped being blown to pieces and Sam is seriously wounded. Do you really want to risk her and your life?" Then he took a deep breath as he looked into the worried eyes of SG-1. His team. His friends.

"I appreciate your concern, guys." he said. "But trust me. I've got experience with this and I've got better chances in catching him on my own and knowing that you guys are safe and out of the picture." 

Daniel looked from Jack over to Sam and saw how pale she still was. Jack was right. She needed medical attention and he wasn't sure how much of the poison was still left in her system.

Teal'c stepped forward. "I will remain with you, O'Neill." he stated plainly. 

Jack shook his head. "No, Teal'c I need you to make sure Daniel and Sam make it out of here in one piece. Michael might still be out there and the last thing I want is some sort of hostage situation."

The tall Jaffa nodded. "I understand."

Jack took another deep breath and gripped his gun firmer. "Okay, get out of here, guys!" he said. "I'll see you down in the village."

"Be careful, Jack." Daniel said before he and Teal'c grasped Carter around her waist and led her through the door.

Jack nodded. "Just get out of here." he said.

**Chapter 7**

Jack had searched the entire house carefully for any signs of an intruder besides them. But he had found nothing. Now he stood at his bedroom window and watched Sam, Daniel and Teal'c head down the road and away from the house. He sighed in relief. Whatever he was about to find or encounter in the next couple of hours, Jack was glad that his team was away in safety. Suddenly he heard a noise downstairs and flew around, his hand gripping the 9mm tighter.

"Okay, Michael." he whispered to himself and tucked the 9mm behind his back into his belt. "Let's get this over with."

He slowly made his way to the bedroom door and peered around the corner to make sure the corridor was empty. Then he carefully worked his way to the stairs and slowly walked down, trying to make as little noise as possible. At the bottom of the stairs, O'Neill surveyed the dark room and then took a deep breath. The silence in the room was daunting and he could almost feel the presence of the other person in the room. He closed his eyes for a brief second and then turned to face the table in the kitchen area. 

"No more games, Michael." Jack said firmly. "I know you're there."

There was a motion behind the table and a dark figure stood up. 

"Jack." the man whispered, his voice sounding raw – almost rasped. "It's been a long time."

"Obviously not long enough. What do you want, Michael?" O'Neill said and stiffened cautiously as the dark figure started to walk slowly closer. "You're obviously not here to chat about the good old times."

The dark figure laughed. "That's exactly why I'm here, Jack."

"Fine then. Let's talk, but leave the others out of this. This is between you and me."

"Oh but Jack, they've got everything to do with this. They're your team and your responsibility. I wanted you to know what it's like to have to watch your team die one by one because they trusted you and you failed them. Shame that you had to sent them away. Now it's just down to you and me."

"What are you talking about? Why?"

"You mean you don't remember Beirut in 84? You left me and my team to be fried by the Hizb'ullah. You abandoned us and while you flew into safety, four good men died and I was captured."

"Michael, I had no choice. You would have done the same if you'd been in my position. We weren't exactly on an _*official mission*_ there, remember? And then you go and do something stupid like killing this Palestinian general."

"I had my orders to take out any threat and he was "

"He was not part of our mission, Michael and you knew that. The Mossad had told us that it was getting too hot. We had to get out or everybody would have been captured and killed. I had to make the choice of sacrificing you and your team because you were too stubborn to listen to my orders, or compromise the entire mission which would have meant a lot more dead and risking a diplomatic incident. Tell me what you'd have done?"

"I would have not left loose ends behind." 

Michael smiled as he raised his hand slowly and suddenly, Jack stared into the barrel of a 9mm Glock 19. 

"Michael!" Jack gasped as he stared from the gun into Hutchin's face. Instinctively, he took a step backwards and pressed his back against the wall. There was nowhere for him to go. "Are you crazy?"

"That would be the easiest explanation, wouldn't it, Jack?" Michael hissed. "But I'm far from crazy. I think it's time your realize what we went thought when you left us behind." He aimed the Glock at O'Neill. "Drop your gun, Jack." he said coldly.

"Gun? I don't "

"Just drop it. Please don't think I'm stupid!"

Jack sighed and reached behind his back to pull out his 9mm from his belt. Then he bent down and carefully placed it on the floor. 

"Kick it over!" Michael demanded.

The gun slit across the wooden floor and Jack watched Michael's eyes carefully. Then he swallowed hard, trying to calm himself. "Believe me, Michael," O'Neill started. "Leaving you guys behind was the hardest thing I ever had to do. But I didn't have a choice." And with almost a whisper, he added "And I know what it's like to be left behind, Michael." he whispered painfully. "Trust me, I had the pleasure of that experience."

"Then I think you should experience what it was like for us." Michael said coldly after he'd kicked Jack's gun across the room out of reach. Then he raised his own gun in one quick move and pulled the trigger.

Jack's eyes went wide and he had no time to move, before the unexpected bullet hit him in his right arm. O'Neill cried out in pain and grasped his arm as he lost his balance and slit to the floor. Blood was pouring from between his fingers as he gripped the wound tightly. "Shit, Michael!" he shouted between clenched teeth. "You son of a "

"One bullet by one, Jack." Michael said as he watched his old friend breath heavily. "It was an amusing game for them. They tried to see how many bullets they can fill us up with before we died." The gun in his hand moved slowly from Jack's right arm to now point at his left. "How many do you think you can take, Jack?" he asked and his fingers slowly closed around the trigger. "Let's find out!"

"I don't think so." 

A dry voice sounded from the entrance door and Daniel Jackson slowly walked into the lounge. In his right hand, he held Sam's standard issue 9mm.

Michael turned his head and eyed Daniel in amusement. "Oh, the infamous archaeologist Dr. Jackson has come to join us!" he said. "Guns aren't chisels and brushes, Mr. Egyptologist. I doubt that you'll hit anything with that." Then he turned his attention back at Jack and his finger tightened around the trigger. Jack closed his eyes as he waited helplessly for the impact pain of the next bullet.

The bellow of several shots releasing themselves from the handgun echoed though O'Neill's ears, but the expected impact pain never came. Carefully he opened his eyes and saw the motionless body of Michael laying to his feet on the ground.

"Whatever you say!" Daniel said as he released a deep sigh and then rushed over to Jack. "It's okay, Jack." the young scientist said, his voice shaking as he put his hands under O'Neill's arms to pull him up into a sitting position. "I've got him. He's dead."

O'Neill grabbed his injured arm painfully as he looked at the blond archaeologist, while struggling to get back on his feet. "Gods Danny, what are you doing here? Didn't I tell you guys to get out of here?"

Daniel sighed. "I couldn't just leave you alone here with this guy! We've heard a shot and so I've sent Teal'c with Sam down to the village to get help." And just as Jack opened his mouth to protest, Jackson held up his right hand. "Before you say anything, Sam wasn't happy about it, so don't you start blaming her. But Teal'c was with her and then she thought I should at least take her gun."

"Good thinking." Jack hissed in pain. "But now it's the two of us stuck up here!"

"Yeah, and the radio is dead." Daniel said as he pointed at a smoldering bullet hole in the side of the transmitter unit. "Looks like one of my bullets hit the battery pack and unless we can find another power source, it's useless." He smirked at the implication. "Sorry, Jack. I guess I'm not as good a shot as I thought."

Jack smiled gently and slapped the young man on the back with the hand of his good arm. "Na, Danny. You did good." Then he looked around the room and his eyes rested on the cactus plant in the corner of the room. "Maybe not all is lost." Jack said and pushed himself away from the wall painfully. He walked across the room to the plant and studied it for a moment then looked back at the radio transmitter, then back at the plant. He smiled as he lifted the pot off the table and walked back to the desk. 

Daniel watched him as he carried the cactus with his good arm. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"We need power to work this thing, right?" O'Neill said as he placed the plant next to the radio. "The electrolytes in the cactus juice should be enough to power the transmitter long enough for us to send a message through." he continued as he bent over the transmitter and pulled out two of the exposed electric cables. 

"Is this gonna work?" Daniel asked sceptically.

O'Neill shrugged. "I don't know." he said. "But it worked in Iraq."

Jack moved the plant closer to the radio and pulled two cables out of the back of the transmitter. The n he reached into his pockets and brought out a Swiss army knife. Opening it, he started to cut the plastic off the end of both cables and exposed the silver wires inside. With an assessing look, he took both of them and drove them deep into the skin of the cactus. There were sparks and smoke and then with a few crackling noises, the transmitter sprang to life.

"You did it, Jack!" Daniel called and then smiled. Everybody always had the Colonel down for the unscientific kinda guy, but more than once, O'Neill had showed them all that he had more than just a few tricks up his sleeve. 

"You know, you never seize to amaze me, Jack" Daniel said.

Sam paced up and down the small grocery shop as she listened to Mike Evans giving General Hammond directions to the cabin. As they had made their way down to the village and had Sam's leg looked at by the local doctor, they had headed immediately to the groceries shop to contact the police to get help for Jack and Daniel. The owner Mike Evans was already several steps ahead of them and gave Sam and Teal'c a message from General Hammond to contact him immediately. Sam had wondered, with the events of this day so far, what else could have gone wrong. 

Teal'c stood at the door and watched Sam. "Are you sure you should be walking around like that, Captain Carter?" the tall Jaffa asked with concern.

"I'm fine, Teal'c." Carter said. "The doctor said that the Colonel managed to get all the poison out and I can feel the painkiller kicking in." She smiled encouragingly. "Don't worry." Then her face darkened. "I'm more concerned about Daniel and the Colonel. They're up there on their own." Then she shook her head. "I never should have let Daniel go back. He's not trained for that kind of situation. I should have "

"Everything will be fine, Captain Carter." Teal'c said in his usual monotone voice. "And I suspect that you underestimate Daniel Jackson. He can take care of himself." 

Sam stopped and nodded. "I know, Teal'c, it's just that I feel we should be up there, helping them."

Teal'c raised his eyebrow. "General Hammond is on his way as we speak. It will not take him long to be here and then we will collect Colonel O'Neill and Daniel Jackson."

Behind Sam, a crackling sound came from the radio transmitter on the table in the back of the room and she turned around. 

"Hello? _crackle_ Is this working? _crackle_ Jack, I don't think this is . _crackle_ Mayday mayday!" Carter heard a faint, but familiar voice. "The old cottage at the end of the Burgstar pass. We need urgent assistance!" More static came out of the speaker. "Mayday! Mayday! _crackle_ Can anybody hear me?"

Sam rushed to the transmitter and grabbed hold of the mike. "Daniel! Daniel! Is that you?" She shouted into the microphone.

Teal'c's eyes went wide as he, too recognized the voice.

"Sam?" Daniel asked in surprise. His voice was faint and cracked under heavy static. "Is that you? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's me and I'm fine. The Doc here checked me over and gave me some antibiotics. Looks like the Colonel's first aid for snake bites is better than he thought."

There was a short pause and then Daniel's a voice came though the small speakers. It was as if she could hear his smile. "Jack says he always knew he sucked." Then Daniel went serious. "Sam, where are you?"

"Teal'c and I made it down to the town at the bottom of the mountain and found the local grocer next door to the doctor's place. He's got telephone and this radio transmitter I'm on now." Then she paused for a moment before continuing. "Daniel, General Hammond is on his way here with a team to get you asap. Are you both okay?"

"Yeah. The Colonel is wounded, but it's nothing serious. And we got the guy. He's dead."

Sam sighed. "That's a relief. Hold on tight. Help's on the way."

"Did you say General Hammond is sending a team? Why?" Daniel's voice crackled.

"It's a long story. I'll explain later."

"Okay, Sam. Just make sure you Shit! " The rest of whatever Daniel wanted to say was swallowed by a sudden burst of static and suddenly the channel was silent.

"Daniel?" Sam asked into the mike. "Daniel! Come in, Daniel!"

But there was only silence.

"I don't like this." Carter said as she turned to Teal'c. "Something's wrong."

**Chapter 8**

Daniel had dropped the microphone and ducked instantly, pushing Jack off his chair, as a bullet had ripped through the radio transmitter and sent sparks flying through the air. Then there was silence. Smoke came out of the radio and Daniel took a deep breath as he carefully looked over to Jack to see if he was all right. O'Neill was laying on the floor a few feet away from Daniel, his face distorted with pain as his gaze was fixed at something across the room. Daniel followed his friend's eyes and peaked up from behind the table. On the other side of the room, he could see a man standing behind them in the doorway in the flickering candlelight, his gun aiming at Jack. 

"Michael!" Jack whispered painfully, as he pushed himself up to stand, and Daniel knew he had only seconds time as he reached for what must have been Jack's gun, which was laying on the floor, slightly out of sight underneath the cupboard. He didn't want to think about how it was possible that the man was still alive. In one quick move, Daniel reached for the gun and brought it up, aiming at Michael, but his motion was to slow and just as he'd pointed the weapon at Michael, a shot released itself from the man's gun. 

Jack gasped in pain as he doubled over and sunk to the floor clutching his stomach. Daniel pressed his lips together in determination and pulled the trigger. Even though he detested violence, there was no doubt about his action now. In his eyes he just saw the man who'd tried to kill them all, the man who'd tried to kill Jack and in his fury, Jackson emptied the entire magazine into the body on the other side of the room. 

The impact of the bullets pushed Micahel's body backwards and sent him crashing into the wall. His arms dropped the gun and he tried to hold on to the small table next to him, tipping it over in the pointless effort. The table tipped over and the burning candles and everything else on it dropped to the floor. Slowly Michael slit down to the ground, leaving a bloody trail on the wall. Daniel stared at the motionless body for a few seconds. There was no way Michael was still alive. A soft moan from behind made Daniel turn around and he rushed over and sunk to his knees next to the injured Colonel. 

"I think I've got him now, Jack." he said, looking behind him at the bloody mess that was Michael Hutchins. "He's dead." he said as he tried to pull O'Neill's hands away from his stomach to take a look at the wound. 

"Ya think?" O'Neill whispered painfully, glancing past him at the body of Michael. "Gosh, Danny. Remind me not to get you angry at me!"

Jackson smiled. "Good to see you haven't lost your sense of humour." he said and then looked around. The entire wall behind Michael's lifeless body had caught fire as the candles had rolled beneath the curtains of the near-by window and the flames were slowly spreading. Smoke had started to fill the cabin and it wouldn't be much longer until the entire cottage would be engulfed in flames. 

"I know I shouldn't move you, Jack but if we don't get out of here, we're both gonna burn down with this place!" Daniel leaned down and put an arm around O'Neill's shoulders, trying to lift him upright as gently as possible. "C'mon."

Jackson hefted Jack's body around his shoulders and started to drag them both towards the door. Jack gasped in agony at the movement, his eyes squeezed shut as the pain in his stomach made walking almost impossible. 

"Oh, shit." Jack breathed between clenched teeth as he clasped his stomach instinctively to stop the bleeding. His vision was becoming more and more blurred both from the on-set of shock and from the thick smoke, which had begun to fill the cottage, as he struggled for breath and slowed down. Jack's instincts had taken over and he felt that right now, anything was better than walking any further.

"Jack, come on." Daniel pleaded feverishly as he felt the Colonel stop. "It's not far anymore. You can make it."

Jack swallowed hard and nodded. 

Leaning on each other, they made it across the lounge and headed for the front door. With Jack hanging heavily on his side, Daniel kicked the door open with his right leg and they practically stumbled outside onto the porch. Both men coughed deeply as their lungs breathed in the fresh air and tried to rid themselves of the thick smoke. Daniel grabbed O'Neill firmer and hauled him across the clearing away from the burning house into safety. The young archaeologist didn't know how powerful the blaze might become as it ate through the wood of the cottage and consumed it bit by bit, but he knew that he didn't want to be too close to find out. He dragged himself and Jack towards the other side of the clearing, grimly struggling to keep hold of O'Neill and once he felt they were a safe distance away from the house, he gently lowered the Colonel onto the grassy ground.

Daniel sighed with relief as he watched the dancing flames for a moment, decided that they were far enough away and then looked down at his friend. Jack's face was distorted with effort to suppress the obvious pain he was in, but he managed to produce an encouraging smile. But the archaeologist's face darkened as he pulled O'Neill's hands away from his stomach wound. Blood was literally pouring out of the place where the bullet had entered Jack's stomach. This was nasty and Daniel knew that even with sufficient medical help, a wound like this was life threatening. 

"Jack " he started and had to stop to clear her throat. 

O'Neill had caught Daniel's hand with his. "Daniel, get help!" he whispered, his voice heavy with pain.

"No, Jack. I can't leave you here alone like this! You're shot and I've got to "

O'Neill shook his head and his hand squeezed the younger man's tighter. "No, Daniel. We both know there's nothing you can do for me here. I've seen wounds like this before." He coughed heavily and Daniel's heart constricted painfully as he saw a thin line of blood trickling from the corner of Jack's mouth. Jack looked up into the younger man's eyes. "There's nothing you can do apart from going to get help."

Daniel hesitated and it was obvious that he was thinking about what to do. Jack tried a smile, but it never reached his pain-filled eyes. "Please, Danny!" he whispered.

Daniel was quiet for a moment and considered his options. On one hand, he didn't want to leave Jack alone now. He was badly wounded and god only knew how much time he had. On the other hand Jack was right. There was nothing, Daniel could do for him here apart from making him comfortable and watching him 

Daniel nodded heavily. Then he took off his jacket, rolled it up and placed it under O'Neill's head. Then he stood up. "I go for help." he said. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Just don't go anywhere, okay?"

Jack tried a small laugh. "Yeah, okay." he said. "I won't go out dancing just yet, I promise."

Jackson threw a last look at Jack and started to run.

**Chapter 9**

Daniel had left Jack laying in the grass a save distance away from the burning house and had made his way down the road and towards the village. In the distance, he could see the battered remains of Jack's car. It had only been this morning that SG-1 had their first taste of Michael's revenge plan, but right now it seemed like an eternity ago.

A thudding noise slowly penetrated into Daniel's thoughts and it grew louder and louder as it approached. Daniel stopped and tried to determine where the noise was coming from and what it was. Then his mind connected the noise with an image. 

A helicopter!

Daniel took a deep breath and ran into the middle of a clearing, which had opened up to his side. In the distance, he could see a black military helicopter approaching

Daniel threw his arms up into the air and waved. "Hey! Hello! Down here!"

As the helicopter set down, Daniel rushed up to it, carefully ducking the still rotating blades. He stopped dead as he spotted General Hammond jumping out from inside.

"General Hammond?" he asked in surprise at seeing the head of the SGC slipping out of the helicopter, followed by Sam and Teal'c. "What are doing here, Sir?"

General Hammond motioned at his men to search the area. "We had a breach of security at the SCG." he said seriously. "Somebody had somehow managed to hack past our firewall into the computer system and downloaded my personal e-mails." Sam and Teal'c stepped up to the General as he continued. "The person seemed mainly interested in my e-mail exchange with Colonel O'Neill and had downloaded the details of this weekend's trip."

"Michael?" Daniel asked as he looked from the General to Sam. 

Carter nodded. "We think so. I mean it's got to be more than just a coincidence. How else would he have known what we were up to and where to find us?"

Jackson tried to digest the new information, but into all of this, the image of Jack laying outside the burning house penetrated his mind. He took a deep breath as he pulled the General with him towards the house and his eyes pleaded urgently. "General, we're wasting time Michael is dead and Jack he's been shot. He's been hurt bad. Please Sir, we have to hurry!"

General Hammond nodded and waved to a group of soldiers behind him to head towards the house. "Let's go, people!" he shouted and then turned back at Jackson. "I know." Hammond said. "Captain Carter has already informed me and I brought the paramedics team along with me. Dr. Frasier is standing by back at the base."

**Epilogue**

The helicopter made his steady ascent and headed off towards Cheyenne Mountain. Sam and Teal'c sat next to General Hammond, watching Daniel. The young archaeologist was sitting on the other side of them, leaning worriedly across a stretcher onto which the medical team had placed Jack. He had been unconscious as they found him, but the accompanying doctor had ensured them that O'Neill was still alive and would make it. Even though it had been a close shave. 

Again.

Daniel winced as watched the motionless form of Jack strapped securely onto the stretcher. Electrodes where attached to his chest, monitoring his faint but steady heartbeat. An oxygen mask covered O'Neill's mouth and nose to help him breath. The wound on Jack's right arm had been cleaned and provisorically bandaged and a large compression placed on his stomach to stop the bleeding. The doctor had started an IV drip, which was hanging from a thin rail attached below the ceiling of the helicopter. Just then, Daniel saw Jack's eyes flutter until they opened slowly and started to look around. 

"Hi Jack," Daniel said, smiling softly at his friend. "Welcome back."

Jack's mouth moved for several moments underneath the oxygen mask, and as Daniel leaned over and lifted the mask, one word finally managed to escape Jack's lips. 

"Hurts."

Daniel nodded. "Yes, I know, but they didn't want to give you anything more until we get to the base and they can run some test. Just relax. We're almost there." 

Jack nodded and closed his eyes exhaustedly. Then they opened again and looked around until his eyes settled on General Hammond.

"Have you found him, Sir?" O'Neill whispered, his face contorted in pain.

"Found who, Son?" General Hammond asked.

O'Neill swallowed hard. "Michael, Sir." he struggled for the words. "Have you recovered his body?"

General Hammond looked over at Daniel Jackson, who shook his head. "The house burned down completely, Jack." Daniel said. "And with the amount of bullets I've pumped into him, there's no way he's still alive."

But Jack didn't look convinced. He tried to raise his head as if to get up. "We have to go back and "

"Trust me, Jack." Daniel said and placed a calming hand on O'Neill's shoulder, pushing him back down. "There's no way he could have gotten out." The archaeologist smiled and nodded reassuringly. "He's really dead this time."

Jack swallowed hard. "Yeah." he said as he closed his eyes and tried to settle back into the soft pillows of the stretcher and giving in to the soothing warmth of the painkillers staring to set in. 

"He's really dead this time."

**The End ?**


End file.
